[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 59 (Wednesday, April 22, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E936]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   INTRODUCING THE SENATOR PAUL SIMON WATER FOR THE WORLD ACT OF 2009

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                          HON. EARL BLUMENAUER

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 22, 2009

  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Madam Speaker, in honor of the 39th Annual Earth Day 
celebration, I am introducing the Senator Paul Simon Water for the 
World Act of 2009, with Representatives Donald Payne, Dana Rohrabacher, 
Jesse Jackson Jr., Zach Wamp, Peter Welch, John Boozman, Dan Burton, 
George Miller, and Jeff Fortenberry as original cosponsors. The purpose 
of this Act is to empower the U.S. Government to respond to the 
pressing poverty, security, and environmental threats presented by the 
dire mismanagement and shortage of global freshwater.
  Today, one-fifth of the world's population relies on freshwater that 
is either polluted or significantly overdrawn. A lack of safe water and 
sanitation is an ongoing threat to global security and remains the 
world's greatest health problem, accounting for 2 million deaths a year 
and half the illness in the developing world.
  At the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, 
South Africa the United States and 185 other countries agreed to the 
goal of cutting in half the percentage of people without access to safe 
water and basic sanitation by 2015. I worked with the Chair and Ranking 
Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Henry Hyde and Tom 
Lantos, and Senate Majority and Minority Leaders Bill Frist and Harry 
Reid to enact the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005. 
This landmark bipartisan legislation established investment in safe and 
affordable water for the world's poorest as a major goal of U.S. 
foreign assistance.
  We are halfway to the 2015 Millennium Development completion date and 
we must redouble our efforts. Although progress is being made through 
innovative partnerships between the U.S. Government, NGOs, businesses, 
and local partners, nearly 900 million people worldwide still lack 
access to safe drinking water and 2 out of 5 people on the planet lack 
basic sanitation services. By 2025, climate change and rapid population 
growth will further stress water resources and are expected to leave 
2.8 billion people in more than 48 countries facing severe and chronic 
water shortages.
  The United States cannot sustainably meet its poverty alleviation, 
global health, or development assistance goals without addressing the 
issue of safe water and sanitation. This legislation answers the call 
to act. The overarching goal of the Water for the World Act is to 
provide 100 million of the world's poorest with first-time access to 
safe drinking water and sanitation on a sustainable basis by 2015. To 
accomplish this goal the legislation builds upon the Water for the Poor 
framework for investment, expands U.S. foreign assistance capacity, and 
recognizes sustainable water and sanitation policy as vital to long-
term diplomatic and development efforts.
  The Water for the World Act complements legislation introduced 
recently in the Senate by Senators Richard Durbin, Bob Corker, and 
Patty Murray. Through this legislation we will help the U.S. government 
focus its efforts and fully implement a smart and efficient global 
water strategy that meets our commitment to extend safe drinking water 
and sanitation to over a billion people in need.

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